Cognitive Impairment

I live and work in Maryland and I was wondering about everyone's experience with Lyme and it's cognitive effects.
For 3 years I did wildlife work for the government and spent at least 5 days a week outdoors. During that time, I can't even begin to count the number of tick and mosquito bites I've had. I have been tested negative for Lyme twice in the past few years, but something is wrong. I've had (and still have) numerous symptoms, but honestly, I've been living with this for so long I can't tell what is normal anymore. Were flu like symptoms from Lyme or did I just have the flu? Are my aches are from Lyme or just aging? The two definite issues I have are excessive sweating and a decreased mental ability. Both have reached a point where they are almost unbearable.

As far as the mental aspect... about 2 years ago, while attending college, it was like a fog enveloped my brain. I couldn't learn new material. I'd read things over and over and not be able to retain the information. My grades went from virtually straight A's to failing badly. It was sooo frustrating. I spent more time studying than ever and still couldn't pass my more difficult classes. (It seemed to be mainly when learning new material or short term memory. Information that I already knew was still there and available for recall.)
And , on top of that, I found myself getting confused just understanding a word problem or multiple choice question. I could read a question such as "Select which answer is NOT true." Then, in the time it takes to read the choices, I would forget the NOT part and select the wrong answer. I knew something was wrong, but I wasn't sure what it was. I eventually had to drop out of school.

Prior to this experience, I had been diagnosed with ADD and prescribed Adderall. To combat my more recent inability to focus my dosage was increased. It did seem to help, but I still feel like I'm in a fog. Now I am concerned that the Adderall may just be compensating for Lyme symptoms. Is that possible?

Did any of you experience similar impairment?

Thanks in advance for any input,

Michael

(I want to add, I have the sweating issues even when I am not taking the Adderall. I understand that Adderall can cause or exacerbate the sweating.)

Post Edited (Michael33) : 5/26/2015 8:20:09 PM (GMT-6)

Hi, Michael33.

By the time I finished reading your second paragraph, my shoulders were up around my ears: I know exactly what you're talking about and it is not a pleasant memory. My way of describing it was: data comes in through my eyes but it never hits my brain.

The cognitive issues you describe were the reason I had to stop working as an analyst--I simply could not do the job any longer. My brain just didn't work anymore. You called it frustrating, but I remember being terrified.

But, after admittedly prolonged ABX treatment, my brain came back. And it came back completely, more or less overnight, like a light switch being turned on. In the next few months, the physical symptoms, most notably the constant pain, also went away. I'm back at my old job again.

So definitely seek treatment. This can be fixed.

Michael,

I cringed reading your post as well. :(
Way too many similarities. Reading, rereading, reading again… starting over because you just can't get the words to enter your brain.

For me, auditory process is worse. I have to repeat parts of phrases of what I am hearing over and over and over and over again and by the time I "get it" I'm 2 conversations behind. It's like my brain is buffering… It's exhausting.

I do hope you get tested again. Not sure if your previous tests were inconclusive or negative but I strongly urge you to "provoke" a better immune response before you test this time. Go buy some Olive Leaf Extract from a health food store or online (Gaia has a good organic version, $34) and start slow and titrate up for 6 wks, the length of the lyme lifecycle.

Once your immune system gets this boost, it should start producing more and more antibodies against the infection, which will help you get a more accurate response w/ your test. Since the typical lyme western blot tests are serology tests, it takes a relatively well functioning immune system for them to test accurately, which is why so so so so many sick people test negative.

You're in good company here, lots of good info and generous people wiling to answer questions.

p

Yeah, I gave up on feeling intelligent.

Went from "brilliant" to barely able to string together a couple paragraphs. All the usual cognitive stuff.

The memory's very bothersome though right now especially, trying to heal, 'cause there's so much information that I'd like to be able to retain, but.. it's gone after a day or so.

That, and having a weak voice - not in that it's hard to speak loudly, but that it's hard for me to find the words to make people hear me. I feel like I might as well be a mute.

But.. who knows, hopefully it'll come back to us though, huh? Until then, just gotta try and heal up, hanging on to what we got left, right?

Hard as it may be to take comfort in, at least for me, it could be worse. I used to beat on myself two, three years ago for how slow I felt. Would be happy to be back there now.

Oh well.

Debbie Downer out. *poof* *vanish*